The Chacma baboon as an organ donor for man.

Pathological conditions of the intima due to trauma or existing donor pathology can result in arterial thrombosis after transplantation (1). We recently encountered a case where a question was raised about the condition of the donor renal artery, in which angioscopic examination was used to establish that the artery was satisfactory. The kidney was from a 58year-old donor who died of an intracranial hemorrhage. Organ recovery was uneventful. On backtable examination of the renal artery there appeared to be intramural hemorrhage and the possibility of an intimal dissection. We used a 2.2-mm angioscope (Olympus Angiofiberscope PF22) that was easily directed into the distal renal artery. The cold UW preservation solution in which the kidney was immersed provided a perfect bloodless field. During withdrawal of the angioscope, a clear view of the wall of the renal artery was obtained. A small proximal artherosclerotic plaque was noted near the orifice to the aorta. There was no evidence of intimal tear. The procedure lasted less than 10 min. The kidney was transplanted without technical complications. The development of angioscopy has been one of the recent advances in vascular surgery (2). Angioscopes can be readily used in transplantation, as was shown in this case. The advan-